Monday, 20 June 2011

Smoot-Hawley 81 years later

The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act was a grave error for U.S. trade policy. As the United States slid into depression, the act represented a desperation move by Congress and President Hoover. Since then, presidents have regarded free trade as the rule rather than the exception. In this Cato Daily Podcast economist Douglas A. irwin discusses the Smoot-Hawley Act and its legacy.